Teach Primary Issue 18.6

www.teachwire.net | 45 L E ADERSH I P P upil poverty is short-changing children out of getting the education they deserve. In Watford, where my school, Parkgate Junior, is situated, research suggests one in nine children were living in poverty in the year to March 2023. Our 240 pupils come from a mix of socio-economic backgrounds; many of them live in the nearby social housing estate. Just 13 per cent of our children qualify for free school meals, which is well below the national average of POVERTY PROBLEM 24.6 per cent, but hides the real picture. While Parkgate has below average numbers of pupil premium recipients, there are many families finding it hard to make ends meet but who don’t qualify for free school meals. These ‘just about managing’ – or JAMs – include parents working two jobs and those involved in the grey economy. This is not unusual, given that 80 per cent of families using a food bank have at least one working parent. Identifying the challenges Our leadership team undertook training to help build awareness of financial barriers to education, identify problem areas and unseen inequalities, and discover more about breaking the link between financial background and educational outcomes. The training shone a light on areas we’d not considered before and completely changed how we look at everything. I’m always thinking of the cost to our families. THIS WAY! School improvement advice for headteachers and SLT MIDDLE LEADERS | CPD | SUBJECT LEADERSHIP Tackling the